Snow Patrol has always been a favorite band of mine, but it wasn’t until recently that I really began enjoy their work. It seems that they’re one of the few truly unique bands left, who focus on art rather than sellability. A Hundred Million Suns is their newest album; as it’s the only full-length cd of theirs that I own, I’m not sure how it compares to past works. Standing alone, though, it’s a wonderful listen.
1. If There’s A Rocket Tie Me To It: The album starts out right away with what makes Snow Patrol special. I mean, how many modern bands even have the vocabulary to deem something a “surplus reprieve” or use descriptive phrases like “cracks and barks like primal music?” Musically, the song is very diverse and utilizes electronic elements and signature band instruments, all overarched by Gary Lightbody’s incredible vocals.
2. Crack the Shutters: Not surprisingly, this is one of the most popular tracks from the album. The sound creates a feeling of warmth and happiness that Snow Patrol seemed to stay away from in their earlier songs. Once again, diverse instruments are used. The song expresses love for a particular woman, especially her physical appearance: “Crack the shutters open wide, I want to bathe you in the light of day, And just watch you as the rays, Tangle around your face and body.”
3. Take Back The City: This is one of the more unique-sounding songs on the album. The chorus starts out with a single guitar and slowly grows to a fully-orchestrated chorus. The lyrics express the paradoxical nature of cities, in their wrongs and rights: “I love this city tonight, I love this city always, It bears its teeth like a light, And spits me out after days, But we’re all gluttons for it, We know what’s wrong and it’s right, For every time it’s been hit, Take back the city tonight.”
4. Lifeboats: This is probably one of my least favorite songs on the album. There isn’t much special musically or lyrically that really jumps out. The lyrics communicate a theme that will be repeated later: that of relating a lover to a lifeboat.
5. The Golden Floor: I enjoy this song slightly more than the previous one, but it still represents a bit of a low point in the album. The use of clapping hands creates a somewhat misleading upbeat tempo to begin with. While this element continues for the duration of the song, the vocals drift into minor keys and create a tone of longing or muted sadness. As the beginning lyrics suggest, the song refers to dancing.
6. Please Just Take These Photos From My Hands: The album picks right up with this song, the buoyant nature of which becomes clear with the opening guitar chords. The lyrics are some of my favorites from the album. They describe looking at old pictures, presumably depicting people from past relationships or former friends, and trying unsuccessfully to remember where or when the particular event took place: “When all this actual life played out, Where the h*** on Earth was I?, I rack my brains but it won't come, Through water damaged bloodshot eyes, The fleeting triumphs, brazen lies, All seem to mingle into one.” The song does contain a certain word referring to a place of eternal pain and suffering; but to me, at least, this is fairly mild.
7. Set Down Your Glass: The key to this song is in the underlying bass melody, over which guitar is layered. Lyrically, the song is a simple love tune: “And I'm shaking then I'm still, When you're eyes meet mine I lose simple skills, Like to tell you all I want is now.”
8. The Planets Bend Between Us: This is one of my favorite songs on the album. The chorus is one of the most beautiful vocal pieces that I’ve ever heard. Again, Snow Patrol is successful in creating a mood in the listener, this time one of lukewarm muted happiness. The lyrics once again make up a simple love song: “I will race you to the waterside, And from the edge of Ireland shout out loud, So they could hear it in America, It's all for you.”
9. Engines: The song begins with one of those electronic sounds that fades between your ears and messes with your mind. Some sort of filter is used over Lightbody’s voice in the verses and weird electronic noises prevail until the chorus bursts into life with a background piano melody and guitars. The song’s lyrics are a declaration of past, present, and future love: “You say you love me like the silence of the turning earth, You say you love me like the endless roar of modern of life, You say you love me like the laughter and the kissed back tears, You say you love me like the past the now the coming years.” Similar choruses are then repeated throughout the song beginning with “I know I love you like…” and finished by “I know you love me like…”
10. Disaster Button: This is perhaps my favorite song on the album. It harkens back to some of Snow Patrol’s previous singles. The lyrics do contain one instance of the f-word towards the beginning, but it is only said once and not repeated throughout. The track is one of those classic concert pieces and mentions events that presumably have to do with the life of a rock star.
11. The Lightning Strike: There are very few bands that I can think of who would attempt to produce a sixteen-minute plus song, but that’s what Snow Patrol did with this track. It is comprised of three smaller songs: What If This Storm Ends?, The Sunlight Through The Flags, and Daybreak. These three pieces each represent a different idea and together they comprise a journey. What If This Storm Ends? creates a tone of brooding and conflict. The Sunlight Through The Flags seems to suggest the beginning of a resolution with its simplistic piano melody. Finally, Daybreak represents a final decree and an end to the storm created in the beginning. Obviously each of these feelings corresponds to a stage in a relationship. The result is long but satisfying.
Apart from a few instances of language, Snow Patrol’s A Hundred Million Suns is a pleasing listen. All the tracks combine to form a work of art, capped off by the epic The Lightning Strike. There are few bands who have the musical ability and lyrical depth of Snow Patrol. Let’s hope those qualities aren’t a dying art.
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